Whispers In The Dark
by PaintedinAllColors
Summary: This was his game, his hunt, and it went by his rules. They were nothing but prey, simple pawns on the board, and he was the predator. He would break them, hurt them, and kill them, all for the thrill of the hunt.
1. Chapter 1

Me: Short, I know that, but it is a prologue people. So I don't own, and this is going to be a sort of darker fic. Don't criticize, it's my first try at this kind of stuff, but I hope you like it anyway, and a few reviews would be nice to let me know how I'm doing. I will rewrite if needed. Enjoy~!

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><p>His eyes narrowed as he looked at the happy couple a few yards away, unsuspecting the fiend watching them. His brother was there…with his little substitute for Katherine. He smirked at her cluelessness; he knew his brother. He knew she was only a replacement, a stand in for the real thing. The real thing being Katherine Pierce, a sleazy, conniving bitch. But his little play toy, she was definitely human, no doubt about it. And her blood…absolutely beautiful. The divine scent taunted him, tormented him, but he couldn't make a move. After all, dead people don't just jump out of a tree, now do they? Her looks were average, normal for a human. Hair and eyes the same color as Katherine's, same body type, but less curvy, even the same height. But Katherine had an edge about her; a danger hidden behind beguiling eyes and chocolate tresses, which contrasted well with her pale skin. Katherine was dangerous, cruel, and conniving, but he admired her all the same. She had made him into what he was, but, although he had hated it at first, he'd learned to enjoy the kill. To mess with their minds, scare them, torture them. While Katherine's eyes had a coldness about them, a falseness, Elena's held only honesty and warmth. This girl was quite interesting. She seemed so different from Katherine, yet so similar. And her scent was amazing. Too bad she chose the wrong brother to fall for. But that, like many other things, could be easily remedied. The girl was quite interesting, like Katherine in so many ways. If he couldn't find Katherine, he'd just have to settle for second best. And having to take it away from his brother made it even better. He would be the one to break her heart and soul. He would play mind games with her, torment her, and she would love him for it. And he would cast her away like a used tissue, have his fun with her and leave, like Katherine left him. He smirked. "Incubus", was one thing they called him. "Demon," another. He was heartless, ruthless, and showed no mercy. Others trembled before his power, and although he wasn't muscular or bulky, he exuded an aura of sheer malice and murderous intent that most shied away from a confrontation with him. But he was truly a hunter, a demon of the night born to spread chaos and invoke fear into the hearts of humans; an immortal master of death, one who would focus all his power and energy into breaking the spirit of one human girl. Let the hunt begin, he thought. The greatest and most thrilling hunt ever. I shall be the predator, and you are all my prey, and I will hunt you and break you and kill you one by one.<p>

He left the happy couple to their business, but that wouldn't remain the same for long. He headed into town, observing the drastic chnages in surroundings since he had last been here. Everything was more different, but he could contemplate on the mysteries of time later. Right now, he needed to eat, and eat fast. He spotted a young woman walking down the street and smirked. Dinner is served. He walked up to her, looking around as if trying to recognize his surroundings.

"Excuse me, ma'am," he began. "But can you show me the way to the Salvatore boarding house? A friend of mine lives there, and I'm supposed to see him, but I'm new to town and lost."

"Oh, of course," she replied, smiling. "I'm Amber, by the way." She held out her hand for him to shake, and he took it and kissed the knuckles, smiling up at her all the time. He was a master at this game of seduction, of cat and mouse.

"I'm Damon," he said, pulling her into a side street.

"Nice to meet you," Amber replied, confused as to her surroundings. "What are you?" Her eyes grew wide in fear and her heartbeat accelerated as he revealed his fangs to her, veins appearing below his eyes, which had turned coal black.

"I'm a predator, and you are my prey," he advanced on her, and she scooted backward, but her back hit a wall, and she knew it was over. Damon smiled. "It's okay, it won't be painful." He sank his fangs into her neck, slicing neatly into her jugular. The warm blood reached the back of his throat, and he nearly moaned in pure ecstasy. He felt the life drain out of her and into him, and he let go of her limp body, once light eyes now lifeless and dull. He was rejuvenated and ready for the hunt to start.

"Are you ready Stefan? Because I'm coming to get you. You and your little toy," his eyes glowed with malice and his lips were stained crimson with the fresh blood. It made him look like a demon, and he reveled in that. "And I'll break you, hunt you until you die, because now, this is my game, and you're nothing but a pawn."


	2. Chapter 2

Me: I is a happy Painted-chan, a happy Painted-chan I is~! Soo many favs and alerts and reviews, so I wanna thank all those favs, and all those alerts~! But no matter how many I get, I still don't own the Vampire Diaries...Speaking of which, Ian Somerhalder went turtle watching~! Can't tell y'all where though, made a promise~!

**KaterinaPetrova: Yes, you are the first review and thanks for that! And yes, I sometimes don't make an outline, but you're right, so I outlined this one and have it planned out...mostly. I'm glad you think it's interesting, too~! This chapter is a little lighter, I think, sorry, but I kind of have trouble keeping stuff serrious for long periods of time, but I know what to do about that: when I get back to school, I'm gonna yell "GIVE ME YOUR HATE, YOUR ANGER, YOUR ANGUISH, AND YOUR PAIN TO FUEL MY STORY!" I might actually do that...**

**Annaj9u: See, cuz? You've just gotta try it! And you said this would be a bad story...And yes, you're right about the whole Klaus thing, and this is Stefan's POV, which is hard to do for me. I hope I get this right...**

**laughingsmyfav: First things first: love the penname! And the dark side of Damon is awesome~! Especially since he went marshmallow on the show a bit...Thanks for leaving a review~!**

Just one more thing, though. Updates will be a bit random, but I promise as soon as I have the chapter done, it shall be posted, unless I'm away from the Internet. But if I am, I'll continue working on this fic, anyway~! Well, that's enough of my babble, so enjoy~! P.S.-this was inspired by Skillet's Whispers in the Dark. Yeah, no duh, right? Well, I'm gonna shut up now, so enjoy the story~!

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><p>He walked into the silent house, tired after a long, tedious day as a human. It was empty, as usual, but today, something seemed…off. It was quiet, silent, like always, but the silence seemed ominous. It seemed to scream at his instincts, warning him to flee. This silence was deep and profound, and cloaked him. It appealed to his primal senses, telling him to leave, that there was another predator in the house, a more powerful predator. It summoned an emotion he had not felt in years: fear. Stefan shook the feeling off. He was a vampire, there was no greater predator than him, and why would any other vampires seek him out?<p>

He dropped his bag on the floor next to the couch and flopped onto said couch. Pretending to be human was quite exhausting, he reflected. Who would have thought? Stefan lightly chuckled to himself at the thought; when he was actually a human, he had been full of energy. Old age, he supposed with a smile.

Something rushed past him, freezing him where he stood. The primal fear was back, overwhelming this time. His muscles itched to move, to leave and run as far and fast from this place as possible. He ignored the fear, the part of him that wanted to run away, and he moved in the direction the thing had taken. What was it? Why was it here? And how did it instill this fear in him, although he still had no idea what it was? Stefan cautiously ascended the stairs, ready to fight or flee; whichever the situation called for. Nothing came at him, but the creature's scent led to a room in the house, a room that hadn't been occupied since 1864.

And the scent…it seemed familiar, but he couldn't place it. He had a feeling he'd encountered this being before, but nothing, no one, he'd ever met had inspired this reaction in him before. What could it be? Stefan stepped into the room, the room that was once his brother's, and froze at the sight that awaited him. A whirlwind of emotions swept through him all at once, fear, rage, hatred, curiosity, amazement. Yet the first thing that came out of his mouth was,

"Get out of here."

"Is that any way to greet your older brother?" Damon Salvatore asked laconically from where he reclined on his old bed, that hadn't been used in decades, centuries even. Tall and lean, lithely built and muscled, with a shock of hair so black it put the night itself to shame, and blue eyes so icy, his brother hadn't changed a bit. He smiled, but it wasn't a normal smile, this was a smile full of malevolence, of darkness.

It spoke of unspeakable horrors and torments, of darkness and tombs and dead bodies, and promised pain and suffering. This showed madness, cruelty and insanity. This was a smile that was perfected over the years for its true purpose: to instill absolute terror. And Stefan felt that absolute terror. But it wasn't fear for himself, no; it was fear for the innocent people of Mystic Falls, for what his unstable and hate-filled older brother might to do them, and, most importantly, for Elena.

"It is if said older brother has sworn to make my eternal life full of misery, pain, and suffering," Stefan replied automatically. "And since you did all of the above, I can only assume that you're here to fulfill that promise. You even rose from the dead to keep your word."

"And whose fault was it that I was presumed dead in the first place, little brother?" Damon asked calmly, although his eyes blazed with an inferno of rage and hatred. Stefan internally shuddered at the sight, as well as the memory of that horrible night. "But you made a mistake; you turned your back on me. And even though I've taken this long to heal, I've returned to exact my vengeance, Stefan, and you'd better watch your back, and you heart too, lest you find a stake in it." Damon disappeared without another word, leaving Stefan shocked, just standing in the room that was Damon's once upon a time, a happier, simpler time many years before. Before the catalyst named Katherine Pierce entered their lives, forever leaving her mark on them, scarring them.

What was Damon still doing here? How was he still alive? And how was he so strong? Stefan was turned first, so he should be the strongest, but Damon… Stefan understood nothing except that Damon wanted to kill him. But the warning, 'watch your back, and your heart too', there was something else. A hidden meaning, after all, why did he say my heart and my back in the same sentence? Stefan's phone rang, jolting him out of his reverie.

"Elena," he replied, somehow managing to sound like nothing was wrong, when, in fact, his world was crumbling around him. "How are you, love?"

"I'm fine," he could practically hear the smile in her voice. How innocent she was, and nothing like the one who could be her twin. "You? I know I just saw you, but you sound…worried, kind of stressed out. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah," he replied, hiding his fear easily. "Everything's fine. How come you called?"

"Do you have a brother?" she asked him, sounding slightly confused.

"…No," Stefan replied, hesitating to answer her question.

"Weird, some guy with black hair and blue eyes just came up to me and introduced himself as your brother," Elena muttered, slightly worried.

"I was an only child," Stefan reassured her when he was shaking inside. Damon had seen Elena? Damon had met Elena? "I'll see you soon, okay?"

"Bye," he knew she was smiling, happy to find that everything was okay. He hung up, now truly understanding the comment about his heart. He loved Elena, so Damon would use her to get to him. But Damon wasn't getting anywhere near Elena. He loved her and would keep her safe so matter what, and Damon, he could deal with Damon, the confidant part of his mind told him. But the other part, the rational part, the part that had urged him to run, now told him that he was way out of his league with Damon.

Damon was strong, powerful, it pointed out. And Stefan was terrified of Damon. Who knew what his brother would do now? Who knew who Damon would hurt? But Stefan wasn't about to just sit there and take it. He would beat Damon, and keep Elena safe. He had to. And if he couldn't, then Stefan would leave, no matter how painful it would be. Damon was after him, therefore if he left, everyone would be safe.

"I don't know what game you think you're playing, Damon, but I can assure you, you're not going to win," Stefan whispered, knowing Damon could hear him. "I'll win, and I'll do whatever it takes."

"Good to know, little brother," Damon whispered into his ear, appearing as suddenly as he did before. His presence still paralyzed Stefan with fear. "Then let the games begin, and remember, all's fair in love and war." He vanished, but Stefan knew he would be watching, always there and always watching, watching and waiting for a weakness, because it was a dangerous game they were playing, one that both were determined to win.


	3. Chapter 3

Me: Haha! Another update~! lolzzz I do not own...ah, hell, I went and killed the happy. There, it's all gone for me for today. Thanks a lot disclaimer. And now for the review replies:

**laughingsmyfav: Thank you! For reading this, and for the compliment, but mostly because you also believe Damon has gone marshmallow! And I hope you like this chappy!**

**KaterinaPetrova: Haha! Me too! But that might be cuz I'm creating the angst...And the relationship problems begin soon I promise~! Haha I can't wait to see your reviews when you guys see what happens!**

**xyuechihax: Me too! I was a bit nervous, cuz this is my first dark story, but I like how it's going so far! And thanks~! For some reason, I can do evil characters well, but good characters give me trouble...I'm glad I nailed good Stefan here! And I'm gonna need an evil Stefan for my fic Blame it on the Alcohol when Stefan goes psycho, can you help with that? And thanks for the offer! I'm kind of running low on music to listen to when I'm writing this one...Thank God for the Black Veil Brides, if it wasn't for their song Fallen Angel, this wouldn't have been posted. **

Well, I think I've blabbed enough, so enjoy this~!

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><p>Stefan was worried. Now that Damon was back, there was no telling what could happen. His brother was fierce, unpredictable, and violent. And Damon would do anything to get revenge. So he had to be on his guard, not only for himself, but for Elena as well. Because Damon knew about her and Stefan, and she was most certainly a target to his brother.<p>

And if she wasn't, Stefan knew Damon wouldn't care about her except if she got in his way. And anyone who got in Damon's way would be killed, and his brother would callously call it collateral damage. His brother cared nothing for humans; didn't know the value of a human life. Damon looked down on them as pathetic creatures, but Stefan believed otherwise. It was why he only hunted animals and not humans; it was why Stefan was in school right now. He was intrigued by them; they captured his attention with their queer habits and beliefs.

Stefan had scarce contact with other vampires, but, even so, they all looked down on him because of his feeding habits. Speaking of which, he needed to find an animal to drain quickly; it was almost time for school, and he didn't want his bloodlust to control him. He quickly donned a light jacket, for it was a rainy, melancholy day, and headed to the nearby woods to hunt.

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Stefan's eyes widened in shock and rage as he took in the gruesome sight before him. The mutilated body of a young woman lay rotting in the clearing, lifeless eyes forever frozen in pain and fear. His stomach twisted, and if he had been human, Stefan would have been sick. As it was, he was simply nauseated by the putrid odor and the fear that the next victim might be Elena.

He walked to the body, fighting the desperate urge to run, and rolled it over onto its stomach, hiding those horrifying eyes from his view. How was it that even in death, this human's eyes screamed in terror and anguish? Stefan's rage grew as he saw what had been slashed onto this poor woman's back: Watch out, little brother. I'm coming to get you.

Damon would pay for this. He would pay, and Stefan would stop him or die trying. He quickly buried the body and fed, wanting to get out of the woods as soon as possible. Going into town was okay; Damon wouldn't dare act in broad daylight, Stefan reasoned.

Once he and Elena stayed out of the woods, they would be safe. Elena! He needed to warn her about Damon! No, Stefan shook his head. She didn't know about vampires, and she thought Damon was harmless. Stefan would be the one she would be suspicious of if he told her anything.

He took a deep breath to clear his mind, and came to the conclusion that he should act as if nothing had happened, as if his entire life wasn't falling apart at the seams. The less Elena knew, the safer she was.

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Elena POV 

She studied Stefan as he walked into class. Elena frowned; something was off. He seemed frustrated? Angry? Worried? Afraid? She couldn't identify the mix of emotions practically rolling off her boyfriend, and she couldn't fathom what had caused this raging torrent inside him. Had she upset him when she'd asked him if he had a brother? God, she probably dredged up bad memories or something if he had a brother.

Elena chewed in her lip contemplatively. She'd ask him at lunch.

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"Hi, Elena," Stefan kissed her.

"Hey, Stefan," Elena replied, a bit breathless. "I want to apologize for asking about your brother the other day…I'm sorry if I brought up any bad memories."

"It's okay," Stefan managed to get out. "It's just that my brother died when he was really young…he was my best friend…and I just really miss him. But you have nothing to be sorry about." Stefan smiled at her, but it seemed forced, false somehow.

"Oh…," she trailed off, having nothing to say to console him. "Stefan, are you okay?" Elena changed the topic, wanting to know what was wrong.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine," he brushed off the question, flashing her one of those fake smiles again.

"Okay…," Elena wasn't convinced. Stefan was hiding something for sure, but she knew he'd tell her eventually. She trusted him. "So, I'm going to the Grill tonight with Caroline and Matt, do you want to come?" Please say yes, Elena prayed desperately. Something was very wrong here. She couldn't say how she knew that, but she just did.

"No!" Stefan vehemently protested. "You can't do that! Promise me you won't go out after dark!" Elena was taken aback. Something was definitely wrong. Why couldn't she go out after dark? She'd done it before, and was perfectly fine.

"Stefan?" Elena asked tentatively, and a little hurt.

"I'm sorry love, it's just that I've heard of some…animal attacks in the county next to us, and I was worried," Stefan explained, immediately soothing her fears. So that explained it all…he was just worried for her safety.

"Yeah, I heard about those too," Elena said, frowning. "I think the animal actually killed a few people. I see why you're worried." She smiled up at him.

"Yeah," Stefan ran a hand through his hair. "So instead of going to the Grill, how about we study for that chemistry test?" He grinned at her, assuaging all doubts.

"Sure," she replied. "Your place or mine?"

"Yours," Stefan smiled back, a real smile this time. Elena was relieved; all this time she'd been worried about nothing, he was just looking out for her. But she couldn't shake the feeling that there was something wrong. And that there was someone watching her.

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Damon POV

I guess he found my little gift, Damon smirked. Stefan's reaction had truly been priceless. And now he's worried for his little toy. Poor Stefan, knowing his worries were true must really hurt. And knowing that his own brother was the mysterious 'animal' must hurt even more.

And his little human toy was quite interesting. Not only did she look exactly like Katherine, she was completely different from her doppelganger in terms of personality. But they were both the same in that neither of them mattered to him. He'd get revenge, it would be sweet, and that would be the end of Stefan's little pretend game. Damon would let Stefan think he had the upper hand for a while, but then, when his guard was down, he'd strike, and Stefan would die.


	4. Chapter 4

Me: OMGOMGOMG! HIIIIIII! It has been waaaaaayyyyy too long my friends! What, almost six months? Well, I won't be away for that long again, unless I'm dead, in which case I won't be back at all.

Damon: Morbid.

Kol: Indeed. Leave that to Elijah, Painted-chan.

Me: O.o KOL! *GLOMPS*

Kol: *grins* Yeah, I got the glomp and you didn't Salvatore, what now, huh?

Damon: *faints*

Stefan: Good job...

Me: *chuckles nervously*

Kol: Painted-chan doesn't own Harry Potter or the Vampire Diaries.

Me: Review replies, now, huh?

Kol: Indeed.

Me: Use another word.

Kol: Why?

Me: Because you're old.

Kol: *faints*

Klaus: *shakes head* I've got him, don't worry. *drags him away*

Me: Okaaaaay. Review replies, yes?

**: Thanks! That would be awesome~ And yeah, I have a ton of both, but I'm willing to listen to anything, as long as it's good, ya know?**

**laughingsmyfav: Oh, you're gonna LOVE when he does! Muahahahaha!**

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><p><span>Damon POV<span>

Damon watched the two 'study'. A good predator always stalks his prey, he thought, almost laughing out loud. But oh Stefan, how you have fallen! And isn't it funny how he thinks that he is all high and mighty Stefan? The one who has enough restraint to be around humans while eating animals.

I'd heard whispers about him on my travels, and to be honest, he reflected, I couldn't believe my ears. And, no, he was not a stalker, simply curious when I followed him around for that one year in Chicago. Because the last time I'd seen my brother back then, he'd been vicious. He'd been a Ripper, Damon frowned.

You hear rumors of Rippers now and again; they don't appear that often. Rippers differ from vampires, even though they are vampires. Even the most violent, human-despising, and bloodthirsty of our kind are capable of control, unlike Rippers, Damon went over everything he knew about them.

Which makes me wonder; how on Earth did he do it? Go from no control to complete? Unless…, a plan began to formulate in Damon's mind. Oh, Damon, you are brilliant, he thought to himself, silently laughing. It's time to get to work. He leapt off the tree, landing silently.

"Time to have some fun," Damon said, once a safe distance away from the house, laughing. "Fun."

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Elena POV

She looked out the window, feeling eyes lingering on her. But there was nothing there, only the darkness of the night.

"Love? Are you alright?" Stefan asked, eyes concerned.

"I'm fine," she said, smiling at him reassuringly. But there was a glint of something in his eyes that worried her; was it suspicion? Fear? Anger? But, as soon as it appeared, it left.

"Alright" was all he replied with.

"Stefan?" she tried again, a coil of dread stirring deep insider her. "I'm sorry for bringing up your brother. I didn't mean anything."

"It's okay, love," he held her close, tenderly kissing her forehead. "It's okay." He repeated it as if to reassure himself, not her. And there was something…possessive about the way he held her, something different than the Stefan she knew, the Stefan she'd fallen for.

"If I said that I thought we aren't going to get anywhere studying, would I be right?" he asked, looking into her eyes, back to the sweet, caring Stefan she knew.

"You would be absolutely correct," Elena replied, rolling over on her bed. She chewed on her lip, wondering if she should tell him about the feeling of being watched, even now. No, she shook her head. It's probably my imagination, she shrugged it off. And if it's not, I have pepper spray and the police. Decision made, she turned back to Stefan, giving him her full attention.

He captivated her, drawing her to him like a moth to the flame. His shifting eyes, seemingly different shades of dark every single day; his silent nature which was teeming with emotion and things unsaid. And then there was the fact that he was one of the nicest guys she'd ever known, once she'd gotten past his tendency to be quiet.

Elena leaned in for a kiss; a sweet brushing of lips. She sighed contently, snuggling into his chest. This is…perfect, she thought drowsily, curling closer. Soon, she'd drifted off, wrapped in warmth and love.

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_ She was in the woods, outside the old Lockwood house. Elena looked around; the sensation of being watched was stronger than ever. She shuddered involuntarily, her instinct telling her to run, run now. Something moved in the corner of her peripheral vision, and the urge became more powerful. _

_ Because there was something new about these woods that she's known all her life, something dangerous. Something with intent to kill. Was it the animal that's been attacking recently? She wondered, even while she knew it wasn't._

_ A gust of wind stirred her hair. Elena gasped, breaking out into a full sprint. It was a calm and cloudless day, her mind struggled to comprehend it. That wasn't a normal breeze. There's someone, something here._

_ Elena heard a faint laugh, sardonic and sadistic. She doubled her pace, running as fast as she could. Away from the thing that was here._

_ "Not so fast, sweetheart," a voice said, directly in front of her. Her heart skipped a beat._

_ "Oh, you're Stefan's brother, right?" she asked, relaxing. Elena looked him over; his eyes were icy blue, cold and unsympathetic; his hair dark, darker than the night; he was lean and slight, but tall and imposing nevertheless._

_ "Yep," he said, popping the 'p'. A smirk appeared on his face, and his blue eyes seemed to gleam. "I'm Damon."_

_ "Elena," she said, backing away from him carefully. Because there was just something off about him, something that told her he was dangerous. Deadly. Predatory._

_ Elena took off as fast as she could, not looking back for fear of what she might see. The sky had turned crimson (bloody, a voice in her mind whispered. Blood. Your blood), and the sun had vanished, swallowed up by a yawning black abyss. _

_ "Boo," a voice said, laughing. No, she corrected herself, not a voice. Damon's voice. _

_ RUN! Her mind screamed at her, but she was frozen, paralyzed. Move, move, MOVE! Elena urged her limbs, but they didn't budge, not an inch. Come on, she pleaded with her body, to no avail. _

_ Damon stepped closer, steady, purposeful steps. Panther, came to her mind. He's like a panther. She laughed in hopeless despair, a hollow, desperate sound that echoed as the world around her distorted, darkened._

_ He walked towards her leisurely, as if daring her to try to escape. Elena fought against the force that held her there, willing her body to move, move, move now. _

_ Damon took another step; he was almost to her. She was about to give up, give in. Because she realized that there was no way she could get free from whatever this was. Her veins seemed to be filled with lead; she was weighed down, heavy._

_ He was right in front of her now; reaching towards her with his hands, long, seemingly delicate fingers extended. She shuddered involuntarily, but he chuckled, a dark sound. _

_ "Sweetheart, the more you move, the more this will hurt," he advised her, eyes glittering like diamonds. Cold, cruel._

_ "Not like I can move anyway," she spat back, determined that if she could not move, she could at least try to stand up for herself._

_ "So true, love," he grinned, sweeping her hair out of her face. _

_ Damon's face morphed into…into something not human. Death. She felt as if she was looking Death in the face. His canines extended, and he lunged towards her, ready to kill._

_ Elena screamed._

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Stefan POV

"Love?" he asked, bending over her, concerned. Why had she screamed? What was wrong?

Elena looked back at him, brown eyes vulnerable and wide. She fell into his arms again, curling into his protective embrace. Stefan circled his arms around her, and gently rubbed circles into her back, trying to calm her.

"What's wrong?" he whispered softly, holding on to her.

"Damon," she muttered, making him freeze. Damon? When? Where? Stefan's mind raced; she'd never met Damon before when she was alone. And how did she know his name? Had she lied and said that she hadn't?

"What?" Stefan asked, acting as if he hadn't heard her, when, in fact, her words sent fear and dread swirling around his stomach and filling his chest, weighing him down.

"Nothing," Elena shrugged. "Just a nightmare." About Damon, he finished for her mentally. Why was he doing this? Stefan wondered. Why does Damon need to bring Elena into this? Why?

'Because she's important to you, dear brother. Besides, haven't you ever heard of 'all's fair in love and war'? And this, this is both.'

Stefan looked around wildly, his first thought to protect Elena from Damon. But where was Damon?

"Are you alright?" Elena asked him, gently touching his shoulder. Oh, Elena. He wanted to hold her in his arms and never let her go. So sweet, he gazed at her tenderly.

"Yeah," he replied. "Looking for the Nargles."

"You nerd," she giggled, easily recognizing the reference to Harry Potter.

"You understood it," Stefan countered, happy to have set her at ease. At least one of us is, he thought somberly. Damon still plagued on his mind, an open wound. His brother. Where had they gone wrong? Some days, Stefan tried to imagine what life would have been like if he and Damon had not fallen out. It scared him to think that he couldn't.

Elena simply smiled, her face lighting up with warmth. How he longed to stroke her cheek, kiss her softly, and simply lie with her, letting the world pass them by. If only, he sighed, giving her a chaste kiss.

"I'd better leave," he told her, smiling gently.

"Bye," she whispered, curling back up under the lavender duvet. Stefan gave her one last reassuring smile as he left the room and headed out the door.

"Damon," he said aloud. The wind whistled through the trees. "Damon, I know you're here."

'So that's why I always lost in hide and seek, brother,' Damon's voice mused. Stefan whirled, grabbing a stake from his backpack. He'd started carrying it ever since he'd met Damon earlier. Never hurt to be prepared.

"Damon?" he asked, confused. There was nothing there, only trees and the wind. "Where are you?" Stefan yelled.

'Someone's a bit impatient,' his brother's disembodied voice floated around him.

"DAMON!" Stefan roared. He looked around once more, then shook his head in disdain. "You know, you never change. Always a coward."

'Don't give me that crap,' Damon's voice sounded pissed. Good. 'I'm not the idiot trying to recreate what he lost. I know the past is the past, unlike you.'

Stefan stiffened. He was at a disadvantage here. He didn't even know where Damon was, or if he was even nearby. And if he threw the stake, he'd lose his only weapon. He turned, walking away.

But one thing nagged at him: How could Damon do that? How did he project his voice? Because Stefan knew that was no ventriloquist trick, what had just happened. That was something real, something tangible. Something that he couldn't do. And if he wasn't strong enough, he couldn't protect Elena. No matter what, he needed to protect Elena. At all costs, he vowed.

Damon may think that she's a stand in for Katherine, but he's wrong. Elena is completely different. She's everything Katherine wasn't. She was kind, loving, big-hearted, caring, and an amazing person, Stefan insisted to himself. But a small part of him spoke up, saying, but wasn't the fact that she looked like Katherine was what drew you in? What enticed you to get to know her?

No, he firmly shook his head. No.

!~!~!~!~!~!

Damon POV

It worked! He felt like dancing, swaying through the windy twilight woods. Damon grinned triumphantly; he'd wear them down, tire them out, and when he struck, he'd be unstoppable.

Revenge is sweet, he savored the thought. It is…mouthwatering. And soon he'd have his revenge, have it all. He would. Not matter what, he vowed. At all costs.


	5. Chapter 5

Me: Wow...it's been too long. 

Damon: Wow...you need a new start off.

Me: Wow...you ARE really irritating.

Damon: Wow...stunning observation.

Me: Wow...your sarcasm is the stuff of heaven...

Damon: I KNOW!

Me: I was being sarcastic.

Damon: I will have my revenge...Just wait...

Me: If revenge is sweet...and it's best served cold...THEN REVENGE IS ICE CREAM.

Damon: o.O I want ice cream...I'll be right back, I must find Stefan. 

Me: NO! I don't mean kill him!

Damon: No...I want ice-cream.

Me: I said don't kill him!

Damon: ICE CREAM!

Me: Wait, what?

Damon: I want ice cream...not the revenge, but ice cream.

Me: Oh...

Stefan: PAINTED-CHAN NO OWN!

Damon: !

Me: !

Klaus: GET HIM!

Me:...Review replies now...

**KaterinaPetrova: I'm sorry for taking so long =( But I'm glad you didn't lose hope! Thanks!**

**DSalvatore6: ^.^ Thanks~ And I know, right?**

**laughingsmyfav: Lol, and of course Dark Damon is the best. This is more like the books with Damon's character, but since I don't feel like rereading the first two, it's going to be sort of like TVD with the sequence...go figure.**

**TheViper'sFanGirl: Thanks, I did get them (they were epic) And yeah, because he has the powers, right. I mean, it's the same Damon who needs more to get his revenge. But he's not here for Katherine in this (O.o) So yes, Damon be like in the book~**

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><p><span>Elena POV<span>

"Elena!" Aunt Jenna's voice called from downstairs. _Why are you sounding so normal? How can you sound so normal, Aunt Jenna? How can you, especially when it's the anniversary?_ Elena thought bitterly.

"I'm up!" she yelled back, trying to keep her tone even. Normal. Elena sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. She stared at herself in the mirror blankly, trying to work up the resolve to go downstairs. Her reflection stared back, and Elena almost swore. She hadn't slept last night, and the evidence of that was shown in the dark circles under her eyes. Her normally lustrous hair had lost its gleam and hung disheveled and unkempt. _I don't think I can do this anymore._

"I can't go to school…," she sighed. "Not today." She swallowed dryly as she remembered what day it was. Today…today would always be burned into her mind. May 23rd, 2009. Three years ago to the date. She fought back the tears that threatened to overflow. _I can't cry now. I can't. No matter how much I want to curl up in a ball and sob my heart out, I can't. When I start, I won't be able to stop, because everything has just gone so horribly wrong. I'm a walking shell, and Jer's shooting who knows what into himself to escape, and we're alone now. And nobody understands, not Jenna, not even Bonnie and Caroline, and not Matt. And Stefan doesn't get this, get me, either right now, but I won't tell him. I can't tell him._

_ I know that Aunt Jenna's trying, but she's not Mom. She's not Dad. She's trying but it's not enough because we're all falling apart on the inside. It's been three years, and it still feels like it was only yesterday. It still hurts so much…_

She pulled on some jeans and a top, running a comb through her tangled hair a couple of times. Elena looked at herself in the mirror one last time. _Better…not really. Whatever, it doesn't matter. Not today…_

"Hey, Jenna," she greeted quietly.

"Hi, Ele-Whoa, what happened to you?" Jenna interrupted herself, eyes wide. Her face showed only shock and concern, and Elena wished it was enough. She wished it was enough so badly her very soul hurt. But it wasn't, and that stung more than ever. _Why isn't it enough? Why can't I just let go…just move on? Would it be that bad if I did?_

"Jenna…can I not go to school today?" Elena asked softly. She half-hoped Jenna would say "no"; would put her foot down and make her go. That would preserve some semblance of normalcy in her life today.

"Elena," she paused, closing her eyes, "Go ahead. Whatever you feel is best."

"Thanks," she replied, forcing a smile and averting her eyes. The disappointment prickled at her eyes; covered her heart in a heavy blanket it couldn't shake off; seeped through her veins, turning her blood to lead. _Why couldn't she have said no? Why did she have to tell me that? I wanted her to say no…I wanted her to force me to go… _

Elena turned to leave, the thoughts buzzing in her head like a swarm of angry bees. They wouldn't leave her alone, wouldn't stop. But she preferred them to the haunting melody of last night's dream. She would rather have thoughts of confusion and sometimes anger preying on her mind than scenes from her dream. No, her nightmare.

_Damon…, _she shuddered unconsciously at the memory of his smooth, seductive smile. Chills ran down her spine as her heartbeat quickened, and Elena walked faster. He had told her briefly he was Stefan's brother, but he couldn't be. Stefan was different, kinder, and warmer. He was the warmth of home, while Damon was the frigid Arctic air. Cold and brutal. His face…it had looked like death. Her death. _It was just a dream, anyway. Why am I so spooked? Because he's real. I've seen him. Damon is real, and I have seen him. _

But it had been so real, even though it couldn't have been anything but a dream. Elena had felt everything; each detail was crisp, clear. And this nightmare was not one she could have thought up. The horror she had felt, it was simply too accurate. She had tasted pure fear then; icy and metallic on her tongue, a dense ball of dread in her stomach. She felt it now, but the sensation was diluted, lessened. The intensity of her fear in the dream; it was something she had only felt once before, in a brief, fleeting moment when a car was dangling in the air, as if by a cut string.

"Enough," she told herself. But it did nothing. That word, her weakening resolve speaking in one desperate last stand, could not stop the pure anguish welling up inside her. Elena clenched her fist, tightly. Her nails bit into her skin, but she did not care. It didn't matter.

She shivered slightly, looking around. _Why is it so cold all of a sudden?_ She blinked, startled to realize that she was already in the cemetery. And her feet had carried her to her parents' gravestones. Emotions and memories coursed through her as she stared at the two grey slabs of rock.

The sight of them filled her with rage and a sadness that she couldn't describe. Elena stared at the headstones; and it all surged inside her, in a wave too large to ignore, too fast to stop, and too much to control. _This is wrong. They shouldn't be in there, and I shouldn't be out here. And those headstones, they're all wrong. They can't be all that I have left; all I have left of them cannot be faded memories and rare photographs and these headstones. And those headstones-they're just slabs of rock with my parents' names on them! But that doesn't mean that they represent them like they're supposed to! Mom and Dad were so much more complex than that! _

She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block the memory from coming over her. Truthfully, she didn't remember much of it. Only everything before, and that one moment when the car had hung suspended in the air aside the bridge. And the pure, unadulterated fear that had overcome her then. But after that, nothing. Absolutely nothing; it was all blank. Just waking up in the hospital

Elena sank to her knees in the patch of lush grass, brushing away dried flowers, long forgotten. She placed a few wildflowers, simple yet beautiful, on both markers. The flowers sat in contrast to the grass; splashes of color in a monotone painting. They lay there brightly, happily, and Elena found that she couldn't bear to look at them. She turned her head away as the tears poured silently down her face.

"Why can't I just let go?" she whispered. "It's been three years, and they say I should be over it by now. But is there really any way to get over something like that?" The world seemed blurred now, distorted by the liquid fruits of her sorrow.

She could feel the emptiness in her eyes, her now dead eyes as the tears stopped gradually. But the crushing weight on her mind did not cease. It was still there, and was now more intense than ever.

"I want to turn it all off," she said. Her voice was hoarse, barely audible, but there was an edge to it. It was something different, something raw and unchanged; something that was desperate. "I don't want to feel it anymore, none of this."

!~!~!~!~!~!~!

Damon POV

He stared at the girl in incredulous wonder. _Who knew my brother's pet was in so much…emotional turmoil? _He mused, cocking an eyebrow contemplatively. _Who knew indeed?_

"I want to turn it all off." Damon's blood froze at that sentence. His orbs of ice and fire widened infinitesimally, belying the total shock within him. _Turn it all off…turn it all off…_

The words echoed within his mind, haunting him. Involuntarily, he shuddered. _She has no idea what she's talking about_, he thought scornfully. His eyes narrowed in contempt; that ignorant girl had no clue what she was wishing for. Her next words, spoken so softly that even he could barely hear them, were what shocked him the most.

"I'm so alone…" Damon sighed, looking at her. _She is much different than Katherine. Night and day, when compared. Oh, Elena_, he thought, smirking wickedly, _you aren't alone. Because I'm right here, and you will never be alone again. _Damon's icy blue eyes grew even colder, but this time they held the gleam of malice, the flash of hatred, the cold expectation of beautiful revenge.

"Hello," he drawled, whispering right into her ear. _She is such fun to play with; I'm starting to see why Stefan is so taken by her. But my brother cannot let go, cannot accept that the past is the past. And even though Katherine is sealed away in that church and he doesn't know that, it's only a matter of time. And then…then is when I shall strike. This is all just child's play right now._

Her reaction didn't disappoint him; all wide eyes and gasps. Oh, but her thoughts, those were…delicious. Damon smirked unconsciously, stepping closer. _She is afraid of me, wary. Good. _He paused as pieces of the dream entered her mind, and she stepped back, beautiful terror in her eyes. The eyes that were still cold and dead, only this time they were terrified too, and that only added to the emptiness within. They sent a jolt of…something through him, but he assumed that it was the electricity, the adrenaline, of the hunt.

"I'm Damon," he flashed a grin, showing slightly pointed canines. His eyes glinted in the light, shards of ice.

"Elena," she murmured. He could taste the fear on her; it saturated her very being and poisoned her thoughts. But it was not poison to him, rather sweet ambrosia he was instantly addicted to.

"So, little bird, what are you doing out here all on your lonesome?" Damon asked as he languidly stretched, enjoying the way his bones crackled and popped into place.

"I'm visiting," Elena shrugged, meeting his gaze evenly. But her eyes, they were hollow, defeated. Damon grinned on the inside, this would be so very easy. "What of it?" Her tone grew bolder, not that you would notice, but Damon had had years of practice. "The better question would be why you are here."

"I'm bored," he shrugged, stifling a yawn.

"So you hang out in a graveyard…now what does that say about the kind of person you are?" she retorted, but it was in a softly sarcastic tone.

"I couldn't care less," Damon looked at her as he lay down on the grass beside her. "But I am a grown man, and you, you're nothing but a child."

"I am not a child." Her chin stuck up defiantly at this. "And right now, you're acting more the child than I am." _She has a bite to her, this one has. I think I'll play with her a bit instead of draining her as per plan. Well, not that I have ever been one to stick to plans in the first place...There is always time for improvising._

"Oh, touchy, aren't we," he teased, enjoying the incensed look that crossed her face. This really was too much fun.

"No, you are just exceptionally irritating."

"It's one of my infinite talents." _Revenge is another._

"Arrogant too, aren't we?"

"Ouch, that wounds me, little bird. You wouldn't want to hurt my feelings, would you?" Damon leaned closer, his lips almost brushing her ear. He smirked as she jumped; he could feel her intoxicating blood flowing through her veins, full of fear and adrenaline and countless other emotions. _So addictive_, he thought, breathing her in. He reveled in the scent of her fear, in the sound of her heart beating faster and faster.

" 'You are such a pretty mess,'" he murmured the song lyrics. _'I will choke the life within….I am the monster in your head…After your worthless life is through, I will remember how you scream…'_

"What?" she asked, startled. Her eyes were wide, _doe eyes_, he thought. Katherine's were like that of the hawk, the predator that lies in wait. _Oh, little doe. Run, run, little doe. The wolf is stalking you, and the crow watches over you. Be afraid. Beware. Run, and let me breathe in your fear._

"Nothing, nothing," he smirked, touching her hair lightly. _I love your fear, but I hate you. Such a strange thing to say, but the truth is always strange, isn't it Elena? Just like how I was the face of your death in your dream and just like I am Stefan's. Just like how your dream has suddenly become true, become your fear. And your life has turned into a nightmare. But this is nothing compared the horrors Stefan will face when he sees that I have left my mark on his little toy. His pet, not anymore…then again, neither of us ever liked to share._

"Damon," she whispered, weakly pushing his face away. Futilely trying. As if she could stop him, as if she could do anything to resist him. Oh, but her very blood was like an aphrodisiac now, with the nectar of her fear mixed in, it was irresistible. _And well, I have never been one very skilled at resisting temptation. Oh, but now that is not my weakness, but yours Stefan._

And Damon leaned in to the slender column that was her neck, anticipation building in him, liquid electricity flowing through his veins. His lips brushed it gently as he spoke the words. Damon sent the sparks of his power through her skin; he knew it would jolt through her body, make her unable to protest.

"'I will choke the life within'." She shivered underneath him, and he smiled against her throat. His eyes gleamed once more, in bloodlust and in cold vengeance. _Looks like I'm winning Stefan. You really are careless, aren't you, letting your pet run around unprotected. And here I thought you cared about her. _Damon didn't project his thoughts, no not yet. He will see the mark, and he will notice the difference, and he will know that it's me, but not right now.

He bit down, his eyes rolling back in pleasure. _So sweet_, Damon thought, drinking. Previously untasted blood, to Damon, was the greatest bliss. _So very sweet._


	6. Chapter 6

Me: SImply put, readers: I don't own. I'm not really in the mood for long ranty and funny disclaimers right now...

Damon: Why?

Me: You know, I was about to say 'Don't ask'

Stefan: Yeah, Damon has crappy timing like that...

Me: Thanks to KaterinaPetrova for keeping faith in me~ This one's for you. (I may change it later but...for now this is the best I've got)

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><p><span>Damon POV<span>

Damon inhaled deeply, making a sound of pure pleasure at the mouthwatering scent emanating from his prey. She smelled like the sweetest ambrosia; a light flowery perfume mixed with heady forest jasmine. And her fear of him had not diminished, it was only suppressed. She had dissolved into a puddle of indifference. But he would have long since abandoned her if her fear had left, too. If she had stopped trying to talk back, the pathetic struggle he loved.

Their….affair of sorts had been going on for two weeks. For two weeks he had come to her every night; for two weeks he had partaken of what he felt to be the finest liquor he had ever tasted. Damon had shadowed her, watching her every move. As he knew his brother was watching him.

"Such a twisted, vicious web we weave, little bird," Damon purred. His icy eyes flashed with a dark, sick amusement. "Our lovely, sick little games."

"Our?" she asked sluggishly. Her eyes had long lust their luster, long dulled. "Only yours; not mine, and not Stefan's. You came here and destroyed everything." Elena's voice lacked all the conviction that she would have liked it to have; the words came out as a simple statement instead of a vicious whisper or heated scream. Her face was blank; slightly confused.

He turned to look at her with faux incredulity painted onto his expression. But Damon was laughing internally. _Her voice sounds so defeated. My little bird has been trapped by the cruel, petulant cat. The cat viciously plays with its prey, sadistically making it think it can get away. That is where all the fun lies. _

"I like cats," Damon replied with a laugh. _Figure that out, brother dearest_, he thought with a vindictive sort of satisfaction. _Make of it what you will, but you will never understand what it means. You think you're above me, better than me. You won't even try to figure me out. Just stumble into the dark. Straight into my web made of razors. I will watch as the life flows from you… 'After your worthless life is through, I will remember how you screamed' I will remember how you will beg for her life, for all the lives I've taken. And I will relish the expression, the slow horror dawning like the beautiful, blackest night onto your face as I crush them. Slowly. I think I'll use one of those video cameras, so I can play it over and over for you…for me…Something to marvel at after I am done. _

"….Cats?" she questioned, managing to put an inflection of confusion into her tone.

"Oh, good job," Damon said to her, clapping delightedly. "You managed som emotion. I suppose I'll need to compel you again soon, but…this is so much more fun; to see you on the cusp of recovery, right on the verge of climbing out of the abyss. You can almost see the longed for light! But then I just shove you back over." He mimed pushing someone away with only his finger as he dissolved into peals of malicious laughter.

Damon knew he sounded strange, different. And he knew that Elena was affecting him. She was different from Katherine. That much was true, that much he could admit. She was so…soft. She had a certain warm light in her eyes; a light Damon usually prided himself on destroying. But it was only her blood, only the intoxication of painstakingly slowly crushing every vestige of her life…and his brother's spirit.

It couldn't be anything more than that. _It isn't_, he thought to himself for emphasis as he leaned in again. _I'm only using her. Only one of many insignificant pawns. _

He chuckled as he bit down, groaning as his mouth was filled with the delicious crimson liquid, the taste made all the more heavenly by the knowledge that he had broken her. That he was breaking his idiotic little brother with every drop of her blood, and that he had them all in his power.

Damon looked out the open window and smirked. The white, diaphanous curtains formed a gossamer veil that seemed to obscure the darkness outside. As if such a fragile barrier could stop him! He pulled away, noticing the quiet noise of protest Elena made.

_Oh, you must hear that, Stefan. Your little pet just __**protested**__ at me stopping drinking! How your sad, righteous soul must be eaten away by the pure jealousy. Come on, Stefan, you wish it was you right here. You wish it was you drinking in that delicious blood. She tastes like cinnamon and vanilla, even though she smells like jasmine. Odd, isn't it? I think I should start writing to you, brother dearest. I always have been rather eloquent with pen and paper…_

"Little bird, would you mind giving me your wrist?" Damon asked, tilting his head to the side. "Not like you have much of a choice, seeing as you're compelled and all, but I find it's always polite to ask." _If she wasn't compelled she'd say it wasn't polite to suck someone's blood in the middle of a graveyard without their consent. I guess lack of intelligent conversation is a downside to compulsion. Well, lack of any conversation, really._

"What for?" she asked, even though she obligingly gave him her arm. Her brown doe eyes were hazy and glazed over as Elena tried to muster some sort of emotion, tried to fight off the heavy fog that weighed her down and numbed her. _All the fire's gone out of them_, he thought almost sadly. _I don't think I can compel her anymore._

Damon froze at that measly, unconscious thought. It looked like the ice in his heart had broken into shards and spread throughout his body. _I didn't mean it that way. I can't compel her…because I want Stefan to suffer. If she suffers, he suffers, and that's why. _

"Dammit," he cursed. Anger surrounded his very being. "'I am the monster in your head, I am the venom in your skin…After your worthless life is through, I will remember how you scream'." He repeated the lyrics over and over, a mantra. As if it could save him. "I don't. I DON'T!" Damon screamed. He glared at Elena, who simply sat there, dazed. The compulsion was gone, but he would return. He'd be back after he had killed those flickers of warmth in his cold, dead heart. It was not happening. It couldn't be.

Two weeks he had come to her every night and fed from her! That was it! _But you compelled her_, a quiet voice in the back of his mind whispered slyly. _So?_ He wanted to yell it out to the world. _So what if I compelled her? It was to hurt Stefan! To corrode his soul away from the inside! To hurt him so I can get my revenge!_

The conflict within him raged thunderously; a tempest of huge magnitude that swirled chaotically as Damon launched himself out of the window with an internal roar of rage. But he left a strange tranquility in his wake as Elena collapsed from exhaustion onto her bed. Pale, she lay there, not even being able to begin to fathom what had happened.

She gazed at the fluttering curtain; it was the last thing she saw before shadows veiled her eyes.

!~!~!~!~!~!~!

Stefan POV

He clenched his fists together so hard that deep, red blood began to seep out. _Damon. Brother. How could you? Not Elena, why Elena? Of all the people in Mystic Falls, why Elena? _

Stefan pressed himself closer to the tree, making sure it's boughs shadowed him from the room's occupants. Not that it would make a difference; Damon would be able to tell if he was there or not. _Letters?_ He wondered as the projected wisp of a thought reached his mind. _What is he raving about?_ _I need to get him out of there. I need to get him away from her. Maybe if I give myself up…Maybe if I stake him…Maybe if I somehow distract him I can pull it off. _

But it wasn't needed. Stefan watched, his rage mounting with every second, as Damon traced the veins on her arm almost lovingly. _Lovingly? He really knows how to push my buttons. Don't touch Elena! _ Stefan wanted to scream it out and drag his brother out of her room. And then he suddenly leapt from the window with a mental snarl so loud it could have deafened him. _What…the hell?_

Shock filled him as Stefan peered inside. _He took off the compulsion...There's no way. Something here must be wrong. It has to be some sort of game. That's it, he's going to make me think that he's leaving her alone, but then he'll come back. _

"At least this gives me the chance to give this to her," Stefan murmured as he slipped inside. He fingered the weight of the vervain pendant, shuddering as it began to burn him. He held his wounded fingers to his face; the marks disappeared within seconds.

"You'll be safe, Elena. I promise." The words were whispered softly, so as not to wake her, his sleeping angel, but they carried the weight of a vow he would do anything to keep.

Silence was his response, but he could see a slight smile forming on her lips. He traced them tenderly with feather-light touches as he looked at her. _Elena, I am so sorry. If I could leave and make it all go away, I would. But I'm selfish. I can't be away from you, just like I can't stand to see you hurt. I need to be with you, not just to protect you, but because you are amazing and addictive and beautiful. And I love you. _

Carefully, he slipped the necklace around her neck, adjusting it so the vervain-filled pendant hung from the chain. Immediately, he felt relieved. It would protect her where he couldn't; it would stop compulsion and repel vampires from her. By vampires, he mostly meant Damon.

"Sleep," he told her peaceful body as he shut the window. Stefan sat on the bed next to her still form, basking in the warmth she radiated. Her body seemed to relax completely in his presence. She felt safe with him, and he needed to make sure her feeling was right.

_I failed to protect you once, and I won't do it again. I won't. I will do anything for you, anything to keep you safe, Elena. _

He remembered her hollow, misty eyes; her absentminded, quiet murmurs brushing off of questions. Stefan remembered how she would smile at him as if he was her whole world, her everything. He thought of her hugs and sweet, chaste kisses, all vanished and evaporated like fog in the clearing sun; only to be replaced with a desolate landscape devoid of all life. Something like Damon's heart.

He would get stronger for Elena. Stefan would do anything for her. And he would destroy anything that tried to hurt her.

"I know what I need to do." He brushed her hair gently away from her face, a sweet, caring caress. "And I'll do it for you. Always for you, anything for you."


	7. Chapter 7

Me: I don't own, and without any further prelude, please enjoy the next chapter. ^^

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><p><span>Damon POV<span>

Damon lounged on the overhanging branch of the tree, silent as a panther waiting for his prey. Just as patient, too, as he waited laconically, presenting the picture of relaxation. But his eyes were burning fervently blue as he stared intently through a wide arched window at a silhouette in the sun's dying rays. And what he saw through that window pleased him, sent sparks of anticipation flashing through him. Damon called his Power, let it rise and dance in a darkly seductive aura around his fingertips.

"Are you ready, Stefan?" he smirked, laughing to himself. Talking to myself might seem crazy, but there is a strange and rather disappointing lack of interesting conversation in this quiet little town I grew up in. My humble origins never cease to amaze me in their backdrop of utter inanity."Oh, but no need to answer, that was a rhetorical question. Because we both know you won't be able to handle this. You couldn't do it when you were a new vampire, and you can't handle it now. But it will all turn out to my advantage, brother, because I know how to read a situation. And I know when to stop, only this time I don't intend to."

This is an interesting twist, he mused, smiling. _Very interesting. It should make this either a very long, or a very short game, brother, and I do think it will be the latter. Because you lack finesse and planning, and I have a had centuries the perfect each and every detail of my revenge, created multiple scenarios to use, thought of countless ways to make you pay. You won't be able to hold up a finger against me, not in your current state. But if you do drink again, Stefan, as I know you will, you will not win. You're drinking to protect her, but the dragon is always slain in the end of a fairytale. Only this is reality, and instead of a knight in shining armor, a demon from the pits of hell itself has come to slay the dragon and destroy the damsel in the tower. And your so-called power, your pathetically weak and undeveloped Power is no match for mine. _He laughed softly once more, savoring the thoughts of revenge as if they were the finest wines. Damon felt as if he were bursting with joy; he hadn't touched his dearest brother's damsel, yet he knew he'd implanted thoughts of him into her mind, be it through compulsion or sheer memories. But she knew who he was, and that was all that was needed. For now.

_The fun part will come later_, he reminded himself. _It may already be a grand old time, but the fun has just begun, Stefan._

Glacial eyes gained a new depth of cruelty and curiosity as Damon observed his brother. "But you'd never do it on your own, would you, Stefan? No, you keep your monster locked up in a cell it could never get out of without help. Lucky thing I'm here to assist, isn't it?" All part of the plan, every single movement planned. Because Damon knew his brother, and he knew that Stefan would do anythign to protect those he loved.

A pang of foreign emotion resonated in his chest with that thought, a vague sense of bittersweetness and slight sadness to accompany it. Damon paused-was it loss? He tried to name it, but it eluded him. Loss, grief, rage, frustration, it could be any number of things. But they were all things that Damon no longer allowed himself, things that he didn't want to feel. All of them were reasons he'd essentially turned off his humanity. Because living with himself for eternity had been harder than he'd thought, but living with Stefan for eternity was even more difficult. Stefan's lectures on caring for humans, pure hypocrisy from one who used to kill mercilessly and had had no problem making Damon a killer, too. And to find that his brother had stopped drinking from humans, had stooped to the lowest of the low. To find that he no longer wanted to be a vampire when he was the one who had murdered their godforsaken father and forced Damon to turn? No, Damon had lost his patience after that. _How dare he be so self-righteous when in reality this is all his fault? How dare he pine for a family he could have had if he'd just accepted that Katherine only loved me? How dare he wish he were human once again, and vow to never change another when he changed me and made me what I am today?_

_It's not like I had lost my innocence. No, that was stolen from me when our father decided to send me off to the war. And then stolen again when Katherine came, and broke my heart._ A twisted smile crept onto his face, a bitter grimace. _She did love me, though. Or as close to it as one could get. Stefan can say what he wants, but it was almost like a privelige to be torn to pieces by such a beautiful predator. But Katherine, you did more than break my heart; you taught me how to hate and how to fight, how to manipulate and how to spite. And you taught me how to enjoy the games you played, but what I really enjoy doing more is orchestrating them before I jump in. Now that is where the real pleasure comes in. _

Absentmindedly, Damon fingered a small silver charm. It was powerless, a simple thing meant for decoration, yet it captivated him. _Elena_, the thought rose unbidden to his mind as he brought it up to his nose. Metallic sourness was barely noticable under a fragrance of oranges and a slight hint of cinnamon and coconut. _That girl smells like a walking tropical fruit tart, _he thought to himself_. But it does have its charms. And maybe, just maybe, I can use this._

Damon tossed the charm in the air, watching it sparkle red-orange as it refracted the red light of the sunset, blood painting the usually blue horizon.

He laughed again, but this time sent whispers of his Power, untraceable shadows that would blend in easily with his brother's mind. Damon watched as the flickers of scintillating blackness faded and swirled around Stefan, invisible miasmas. And he waited, all the while smiling, all the while ready.

Stefan POV

He stared at the rich, crimson liquid. It called to him, an irresistible siren song he knew he had ignored for far too long. But it was more than that; it was war between the Ripper, brutal, vicious, bloodthirsty, and Stefan, quiet, intelligent, human. He was Stefan now, and he had worked for centuries to become Stefan. Worked for centuries to lock the Ripper away in the corner of his mind in an iron cage of determination and fear. Chains of caution laced across the Ripper's chest, constricting him. Every day was like a battle. Every day he tried to get free, tried to take over.

"Can I do this and stay as I am now?" Stefan murmured, fingering the cool rim of the glass. It was a question he knew the answer to. But he didn't want it to be so. _I know I can't, but I have to. I believe I can, yet belief is often misguided. But I have to. For Elena. I need to protect her, I need to make sure she is safe. Even if it means that Damon, my own brother, must die. It's a choice I need to make; there is no other way. _He felt a pang of regret and sorrow ring within him; Damon was his brother. His blood, his family. Damon was his best friend and his protector. Was.

Now, he was threatening the only good thing of Stefan's miserable existence, and Stefan knew he had to protect Elena above all else. She couldn't be compelled by his brother again, and she couldn't fall into the darkness that had swallowed him after he had turned. Because that is what would happen if Damon continued to drink from her. She'd die, and then turn, or Damon would turn her himself to make Stefan miserable. Elena was too innocent, too good for that to happen. She loved too purely for it to happen.

"She might look like Katherine, but I refuse to let her become like Katherine," Stefan whispered with a voice of conviction. "I'll do anything to make sure she doesn't turn into Katherine." _But what will I become in the process? I am stronger now_, he replied internally. _I know enough to not turn into the Ripper, and I can use that. This blood, it doesn't control who I am. It doesn't determine who I will become, and even though experience has it otherwise I can do this. I know what the Ripper is, and I know the power he has. And I've grown stronger while he's grown weaker. I can do this._

"I can do this," he repeated. Stefan's voice was louder now, with determination in it. He knew he could do this. He had someone to protect, he had someone to go home to. He had a guiding light, an angel looking down on him from far above and he needed to keep that in his life. He needed Elena like the desert needed water, like the Earth needed the Sun. Like the Ripper craved blood.

Stefan shook his head to clear his mind; he couldn't think of the Ripper. And he couldn't think of the Ripper meeting Elena. A long finger was dipped into the ruby blood in the glass; the red liquid was slightly warm to the touch, making Stefan shiver. He remembered the blazing fire of ecstasy that ripped through him as it slid down his throat, the warmth that he had long lost and still yearned for blossoming inside him. His grip tightened on the fragile glass, but not enough to shatter it into thousands of pieces.

_I could. You could, Stefan. You could break the glass. Break it. Shatter it, destroy it. Just a flex of a muscle. _The voice was sinuous, sly. Chocolate rich, it enticed him. _Such a fragile beauty, you want to protect it, preserve it, lock it in a tower and keep it safe from the world, don't you? _The voice of the Ripper was nothing new. But its words had gained a new allure, a new layer of temptation. _I could help you, you know. Help you not break the glass. Give you the strength to protect it. You are the King, and I will be your loyal Horse for as long as you are strong. And, Stefan, we both know that you are. _

"I-I could protect her better," he murmured, tracing the rim of the glass. The transparent surface was slightly cool to the touch, despite the electrifying warmth he knew the ruby liquid within it contained. It was beckoning to him, calling him. An irresistible siren song; something beautiful. Grotesque in what it could do to him, hideous in how it could unbalance him, but beautiful as the last rays of the sun shone through the window and sent red flashes of light shimmering through the glass.

"I have gotten stronger," Stefan mused, entranced by the refractions dancing through the blood. He inhaled deeply, the exquisite scent an aphrodisiac that tormented him in his indecisive refusal. The perfume sent jolts of desire through him; his fangs were extending in greed and bloodlust. Something he had felt every day, yet denied himself in indulging.

A soft, mocking laughter reached his ears that were slowly tuning out his surroundings in favor of listening to the swirling of the blood as he tilted the glass back and forth. Stefan almost gasped in the familiarity of the laugh, just as he had been drowning himself in the familiarity of the fragrance of human blood-something nothing else could compare to.

Katherine. Her voice, her laugh, always seemed to reach him when he was troubled. When things were turning bad, her dainty, mocking voice would always be there. It was as much a part of him as anything else-something he thought he was used to. Something he thought he could live with.

But as always, shivers raced down his spine, and he half-turned, expecting to see her dance away laughingly, the ghost of her fingertips tracing his features lingering far longer after her touch had disappeared and faded. Stefan buried his head in his hands. He could hear the Ripper inside him with its sinuous, rich voice; he could hear Katherine simply giggling in the distance playfully; he could hear Damon's throaty, contemptuous chuckle. But he couldn't hear himself, his own voice- he couldn't hear the Stefan he'd been when he was human, and he couldn't hear the Stefan he had become now.

"Katherine," he whispered, almost a reverent prayer. "Katherine," Stefan said again, this time his voice dropping to a guttural and vicious snarl. He hated her and he loved her, but he knew that it would be better to hate her. It would be better to accept the truth that she had never loved him and never loved Damon. It would be better for him to just understand that and move on.

But the mark she had left on him was indelible, just as the blood that bound him and Damon, and the mark she had left was a still-healing scar he would never let see the light. A scar of shame and a brand that marked the loss of his innocence.

"Just a scar, am I, Stefan?" the familiar lilting voice asked teasingly.

"You're an illusion." Stefan clenched his jaw. "Just a figment of my imagination; Katherine, you're dead!" The last sentence was wrenched from his throat in an outburst of rage and denial. You're dead. The words echoed within his mind, over and over, taunting with her dulcet, honey-over-poison laughter.

"Stefan, darling, if that's what you would like to think, then who am I to stop you?" she chuckled. Playful, light, teasing, all Katherine.

He went back to staring at the glass, mesmerized yet disgusted by his sheer fascination with the liquid. Why am I like this? Why can't I do this without turning into a monster?

_But you won't turn into a monster, Stefan. You're stronger, better, older, wiser than you were back then. _

_ And the blood would make me even stronger._

_ Exactly! _ The Ripper cried out in glee.

_I'd turn into a monster. Something evil; I'd be like Damon._

_ Oh, but you wouldn't. We have been through his before, haven't we? Stefan, my friend, all you want to do is protect her, but you can barely stand against Damon using a fraction of his Power. There is no way that you could beat him as you are now. _Barely held back amusement colored the Ripper's voice, and Stefan knew the chains were rusting. They were rusting, and he was getting stronger, even though his voice sounded strangely like Damon's.

And he was right. _But would I really give up my sanity, give up everything I had worked for and everything I have become, for Elena? On the chance that it might be enough to protect her? _

Stefan knew the answer, felt it before he could even formulate the question. Yes, he would. He would do anything to make sure Elena was safe; he would give his soul gladly, drink human blood, kill his own brother, if it meant keeping her safe.

"I would be a monster for her, even though it won't come to that now. I won't let it."

The sentence hung in the air, lingered. Stefan sighed, closed his eyes, breathed in. His fingers wrapped around the glass, only not it was warm and he could feel something like a heartbeat pulsing through it. He could feel the heat of the blood radiating even though he hadn't drunk it. Even though he hadn't brought it to his lips.

Remembered tastes, flashes of a delicious forbidden fruit that brought him to unimaginable heights of ecstasy came to his mind as he stared at the blood. But so did pictures of terrified eyes and desperate pleading words to please stop, and why was he doing this and what kind of monster was he?

"I'm stronger now," Stefan breathed in. The very fragrance of the blood made his fangs bulge out, brought back the familiar, ever-lasting companion of bloodlust. "I've learned to control myself." And it was true; he no longer only heard the thumping, tantalizing heartbeats, nor the sound of blood rushing through veins. He could focus on other things, his fangs rarely emerged unbidden. "I think I can do this."

Lexi's voice, the voice that had often reminded him to never do this again, to be strong and to be better, was absent. Silenced, he thought, but maybe disgusted. But that didn't bring the shame it once had, and the glass looked ever more tempting by the second.

"I can do this," he whispered once more, fingers wrapping around the crystalline structure in earnest. Bringing it up to the sky, Stefan felt confident, felt sure.

"Cheers, brother," Stefan murmured. "Let the games begin, for real this time." And he drank. And it was like a sip of water in the desert, the sweetest ambrosia and the most delicious food rolled into one. It was like warmth erupted inside of him, making him hum in pure appreciation, and turning into pure Power that coursed through his veins.

"Let the games begin," the Ripper said with a snarl and a savage laugh. "I will protect her, brother dearest, but I will destroy you for everything you have done."

_Stefan spiraled into the darkness. The chains were broken, the Ripper was free. And he was gone._


End file.
